Container



NIAS ET AL June 1930,

CONTAINER Filed Sept. 14, 1926 R s m s R n MSW .N MMP m A 0 Mu 3, [M #w w L Patented June 24, 1930 UNITED STATES.

PATENT OFFICE HENRY NIAS AND WILLIAM POSTER, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO LILY-TULIP CUP OORPORATION,,OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A GOR- I'ORATION OF CONTAINER Application filed September 14, 1926. Serial No. 135,304.

The invention relates to containers and more particularly to that type of contamers which are made of paper and which areutilized for containing ice-cream and other commodities requiring the use of a cover.

In existing types of such containers, the combination of the cover with the body of the container has been unsatisfactory for many reasons, as for instance, because the cover under a comparatively slight pressure is easily displaceable into the body of the container and is insecurely held against unintentionalcurely in position as a closure and so as to permit its easy removal when it is desired to make the contents of the receptacle accessible. A further object of the invention is to provide a container of the type referred to which is capable of being assembled in close stack formation so as to occupy a minimum amount of space and which, when thus assembled, will not stick to the adjacent containers of the stack but .on the contrary may'be separated from the stack without difliculty. Other more specific objects will appear from the "description hereinafter and the features of novelty will be pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate' an example of the invention without defining its limits, Fig. 1 is an external View of the container; Fig. 2ais a longitudinal section thereof on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the container with the cover removed; Fig. 4 is a similar view with the cover in place upon the body; and Figs. 5 and 6 are diagrammatic views illustrating a preferred method of making the container.

As shown in the drawing, the container comprises a bottomed body 10, that is, a body having a bottom 11 and open at its upper end, as clearlyshown in Fig. 2 and illustrated in the form of a cup-shaped container. its open end the body 10 is provided with an Near,

outwardly extending flange 12 which .presents s'uflicient surface width to constitute a positive stop and a definite seat for a cover, said flange being located'between the major portion of the interior of said body and the open end thereof. At a point between said flange 12 and the mouth of the container, the body is provided with an inwardly extending projection or shoulder 13 which in the illustrated example extends circumferentially of the container in spaced parallel relation to said flange 12 and is connected therewith by means of a peripheral wall 14; the physi: cal character of the shoulder 13, particularly with respect to its circumferential continuity, may be changed if desired without effecting its functions. The extent of the inward projection of the shoulder 13 from the wall 14 is such that the flange 12, together with the shoulder 13 and the wall 14, defines an annular groove a. The primary function of the shoulder 13 is, of course, to offer a resistant obstruction to the edge of a cover disc 16 when in place in the groove a while offering only a yielding obstruction to said edge during insertion of the, cover into its said groove. In the preferred form this groove a is of greater surface width 'at its bottom edge than it is at its top ed e .although this arrangement is not abso utely essential. From the annular shoulder 13. the container is continued in the form of an outwardly flaring circumferential lip 15 as clearly illustratedin Fig. 2. This type of lip configuration is of especial importance in connection with the insertion of the "cover "disc '16 into the groove a as well as in preby against upward displacement and so asto rest upon the flange 12 against displace-:

ment into the body '10. The cover 16 has a diameter greater than the inside diameter of the shoulder 13 and preferably equal to the inside diameter of the groove a; in some.

cases it may bepreferred to have the diameter of the cover 16 a trifle greater than the a normal inside diameter of the groove (1' so that the containe'rwill be strained outwardly in seating the cover 16 in the groove a. At

any rate the cover 16 is materially smaller than the extreme open part of the container, so that in inserting the cover, its entire circumference maybe seated within the open end of the container before the cover is forced home into the groovea. By this .arrangement the open end of the container can operate as a-guide toassist in seating the cover easily and properly. In other words, the provision of an open end of thecontainer relatively wide with respect to the cover disc and configured so as automatically to center the disc and thereby to direct the cover toward its groove and to facilitate its ultimate insertion into said groove, is an important element of this invention. To facilitate the intentional removal of the cover 16 from the groove'a when this is desired, said cover may be provided with a tab or ear 1? which preferably forms an integral part of the cover as shown and in any event is not an integral part of the container. I

The container is made of a material which is capable of being molded or pressed into form by suitable dies, and in the illustrated example, is shown as being constructed of resistant paper of the type commonly found in paper drinking cups. The flange 12, shoulder 13, the peripheral wall 14, and the flaring lip 15, all constitute integral parts of the body 10 and of each other, and are produced for instance by means of the aforesaid dies or their equivalent. The cover 16 is generally constructed of a material which possesses inherent flexibility such as cardboard or the like.

In the preferred method of making the container, a femaleaiie 18 and a cooperating male die 19 are used, said dies being operated to move relatively to each other or one relatively to the other in any-conventional way, the mechanism preferably including a suitably operated ejector 20 whereby the finished container is removed from the dies. The .fe- 'male die 18 is provided at the proper point with ah annular flange 21, the periphery of which is encircled by an annular wall 22 and is continued in the form of an outwardly projecting surface 24. The male die is provided upon its external surface with a peripheral head 25, the purpose of which will appear more fully hereinafter. In addition, the male die includes a surface 26 which rises from the head 25 and then flares outwardly and in part presents a surface contour which corresponds to and in the final position of the dies lies parallel with the outwardly projecting surface 24'of the female die. With this arrangement,

;a space 6 is created between the peripheral wall'22 of the female die and the surface 26 of the male die at a point above the bead 25 when the dies 18 and 19 are in their final positions with respect to each other. The aforesaid space I) is greater than the thickness of the wall of the container which the dies are designed to make, the purpose of which will appear more fully hereinafter.

In forming the container with the assist- 1 ance of these dies, the latter are heated in any conventional manner or one of said dies alone is heated, so that in any case the operative steps are performed in the presence of heat. In practice a blank of suitable dimensions and material is placed in position upon the female die 18 and is forced into the same by the action of the male die 19, as said dies are actuated to cause the male die to travel into the female die. As this action of the-dies takes place, the material of the blank will be pressed downwardly into the female die 18 between I the latter and the male die 19 and will thereby peripheral wall 14. At this stage in the. operation of producing the container, that portion of the blank material which finally constitutes the lip 15 of the container is located between the surfaces 24 and 26 of the respective dies; the dimensions of the blank are such that at this stage of the operations the lip 15 will have a diameter sufficient to cause it to fill the inner circumference of the die 18 at its upper end and to thereby provide a surplus of material at this point. As the action of the dies is continued this surplus material, because of the fact that the'lip 15 is confined by the upper rim of the die 18 is crowded or caused to flow into the space I) under the downward pressure of the surface 24 of the die 19; this inward crowding of the aforesaid material is resisted by the upper surface of the bead 25 which, as a result, shapes the material at this particular point to produce the annular shoulder 18 and at the same time to provide the flaring lip 15 of the container.

The described action of the two dies at this particular point is such that the extent of'inward projection of the shoulder 13* is suflicient to provide an inward projection capable of firmly,holding the cover in place against unintentional outward movement, while at the same time, permitting said cover to be intentionally removed from the body when this is deslred. At the end of thecoperation of forming the container, the latter is lifted from the die 18 .by'the ejector 20, it being understood that the dies separate at the propertime to permit this. The container is then preferably parafiined. It will be understood that the action of the dies 18 and 19 and the character of the aforesaid blank may be such may be of any conventional form. When the body is plaited as shown in the illustrated example, the finished container includes spaced sections of single ply located between sections of two or more plies; these single ply sections impart an elasticity to the container which permitsthe cover 16 to be forced beneath the shoulder 13 into the groove a and to. be intentionally removed therefrom and which, in each instance, promptly restores the container to its normal condition, the moment the cover 16 is removed from the groove a. As a result the locking engagement between the cover.and the container is maintained at a maximum efficiency throughout the life of said container. Because of the fact that the described operations are carried on in the presence of heat developed by the heated die or dies, the parts retain the form and positions imparted thereto by the action of the two dies.

In all forms, the flange 12 provides apositive obstruction or seat against'which the cover 16 rests in its closed position, and whereby it is positively prevented from being displaced inwardly into the body 10 even under the application of a considerable inward pressure upon said cover. The inherent flexibility of the material of which the container is made which may be said to be developed to a maximum extent at the shoulder 13, .combined with the elasticity imparted by the aforesaid single ply sections and the inherent flexibility of the cover 16, permits the latter to be easily snapped into place beneath said shoulder 13 and against-the flange 12 when the containeris to be closed; as soon as the cover 16 is seated against the flange 12, the shoulder 13 will resume its normal position in which it projects inwardly over the peripheral edge of the cover to an extent sufficient to fix the cover in its closed position without interfering with its intentional removal, when this is desired.

The described arrangement provides a closure for containers of the indicated class, which closure is of maximum efficiency for its intended purpose, and is incapable of being unintentionally displaced from. its operative position either inwardly into the body or outwardly with respect thereto. A positive protection against spilling or other unintentional removal of the contents of the container is thus provided. The device is capable of being incorporated in varying forms of containers of the indicated class, and does not add materially either to the'cost of manufacture of such containers or to the amount of material required in the manufacture thereof.

Below the outwardly extending flange 12, the sides of the container body have a substantially smooth and unbroken taper to the bottom. This smooth taper permits the 0011- tainers to be closely assembled in a compact stack formation, a very desirable feature which permits shipping and storing in a minimum space. When the containers are telescoped'within each other in the form of a stack, the outer face of the flange 12 of one container contacts with the shoulder 13 of an adjacent container and limits the relative telescoping movement of the containers so that, when thus assembled, the sides of the containers will be spaced sufliciently to prevent any substantial frictional contact between the sides of the containers. In the absence of this frictional contact, there is very little tendency of the containers to stick together and individual containers may be removed from a stack without difiiculty.

The upper zone of the containers formed by the flange 12, the wall 14, .the shoulder 13,

and the flaring lip 15 is comparatively narrow as compared with the remainder of the body. This construction permits an almost complete telescoping of one container within another and contributes to the compactness of an assembled stack.

' Various changes in the specific form shown and described may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.

We claim:

1. A paper container comprising a body having abottom and an open end, a disconnected removable cover for closing the open end of the container, an outwardly extending flange located near the open end of the body, an inwardly extending shoulder above the flange and spaced therefrom so as to form a cover receiving groove, the inner face of said flange being adapted to form a seat for 'and to limit inward movement of the cover vent unintentional removal thereof, a flaring lip on the body above the inwardly extending shoulder, the sides of the body below the outwardly extending flange having a smooth and unbroken taper to permit a pluralityof containers to be telescopically assembled in a stack, the zone formed by the outwardly extending flange, the inwardly extending shoulder, and the flaring lip being relatively narrow as compared with the remainder of the body, and the outer face of the flange of one container being adapted to contact with the inwardly extending shoulder of the'adjacent telescoping container, whereby the containers may be closely assembled in stacked formation, .and when assembled the sides of the containers will be spaced sulficiently to prevent any substantial frictional contact therebetween and permit ready separation of the stacked containers.

2. A container comprising a body. formed of a one-piece pleated sheet of paper and having an open end and a bottom, a disconnected removable cover for closing the open end of the body, an outwardly extending flange located near the open end of the body, an inwardly extending shoulder above the flange and spaced therefrom so as to form a cover receiving groove, the inner face of said flange being adapted to forma seat for and to limit inward movement of the cover, and the inwardly extending shoulder serving to retain the cover in the groove and prevent I unintentional removal thereof, a flaring lip on the body above the inwardly extending shoulder adapted to guide the cover towards seated position, the pleats of the body extending through the flange, the shoulder and the flaring lip, whereby an elasticity is imparted to said container at its upper portion suflicient to permit saidcover to be snapped into and out of the groove, the sides of the body below the outwardly extending flange being tapered to the bottom to permit a plurality of containers to be telescopically assembled in a stack, the zone formed by the outwardly extending flange, the inwardly extending shoulder, and the flaring lip being relatively narrow as compared with the remainder of the body, and the outer face of the flangeof each container being adapted to contact with the inwardly extending'shoulder of an adjacent telescoping container, whereby the containers may be closely assembled in stacked formation and when assembled the sides of adjacent containers will be spaced sufliciently to prevent any substantial frictional contact therebetween and permit ready separation of the stacked containers.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands.

' HENRY NIAS.

WILLIAM POSTER.-

ean 

